Prime Minister Modi’s vision of Make in India gets another boost with the announcement from Cupertino giant, Apple Inc. that they are all set to launch the first technology development centre in India. The news comes months after Apple CEO Tim Cook’s meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in San Jose to boost the Make in India initiative. This news follows on heels of Google CEO Sundar Pichai’s announcement in December 2015 to open Google’s overseas campus in India. It is indeed a welcome news for India which is all set to forge ahead to join the rank of a developed nation.
The tech giant Apple Inc. plans to allocate 2,50,000 sq. ft. area in the IT corridor at Hyderabad at a cost of 150 crore. The Apple Development Centre will rub shoulders with other giants like Microsoft, Infosys, Wipro and Cognizant inside the Tishman Speyer’s WaveRock facility at Hyderabad. Initiating with an innovation centre in June, the company will start its full-fledged operations by end of this year. Apple Inc is also slated to develop Apple maps in India which will be available in iPhones and Mac books.
With over 150 Apple employees at the development centre with innumerable local contractors for additional support, the Apple Inc development centre is expected to generate at least 4500 job openings.
Apple Inc. also plans to open Apple stores in India in the near future. It had applied with the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion seeking the grant for the same but due to an incomplete application it was rejected. The company has applied again and hopes to get a clearance from the government at the earliest which will allow it to open outlets in India. At present, the products of Apple are available only through E-retailers like Flipkart and Amazon.
Pre-launch strategy adopted
Before launching the Apple stores in India, the company is all set to erase the margins of discounts between the online and offline stores. Till a month back e-retailers were offering big discounts on iPhones which has now been brought under control. Now by introducing pricing hygiene across online and offline, Apple Inc expects to draw customers to its own stores and make them a viable revenue generator.
Probable Reasons for this Momentous Decision by Apple Inc
- With a marketing campaign of Designed in California, Apple Inc has always tried to outsource only the auxiliary services like manufacturing to China and for hardware to Japan and South Korea, while clinging on to the designing sector. However, a recent revenue drop globally as well as the positive growth in the Indian market has encouraged Apple Inc to spread it wings and plan an offshore development centre in India which will generate revenue through cost saving.
- Another significant reason for the decision may be the fact that nearly 1/4 of the staff from the design and technology company is from India.
- Till recently Apple Inc has been concentrating only on the developed countries for a market due to their high-end products. However, there is stagnation in these markets at the moment for the company’s current line of products. Thus Apple is now testing the waters of developing nations with its little lower-end products like iPhone C etc.
- According to CEO Tim Cook, “India is one of Apple's most important growth areas for the next decade. "India with the highest percentage of Gen X population is indeed ripe to set up a consumer base.
